The Use of Sentinel-3 Altimetry Data to Assess Wind Speed from the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model: Application over the Gulf of Cadiz

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2022-08Department
Física AplicadaSource
Remote Sensing, Vol. 14, Núm. 16Abstract
This work presents the quality performance and the capabilities of altimetry derived wind
speed (WS) retrievals from the altimeters on-board Copernicus satellites Sentinel-3A/B (S3A/B) for
the spatial assessment of WS outputs from the weather research and forecasting (WRF) model over
the complex area of the Gulf of Cádiz (GoC), Spain. In order to assess the applicability of the altimetry
data for this purpose, comparisons between three different WS data sources over the area were
evaluated: in situ measurements, S3A/B 20 Hz altimetry data, and WRF model outputs. Sentinel-
3A/B WS data were compared against two different moored buoys to guarantee the quality of the
data over the GoC, resulting in satisfying scores (average results: RMSE = 1.21 m/s, r = 0.93 for S3A
and RMSE = 1.36 m/s, r = 0.89 for S3B). Second, the WRF model was validated with in situ data from
four different stations to ensure the correct performance over the area. Finally, the spatial variability
of the WS derived from the WRF model was compared with the along-track altimetry-derived WS.
The analysis was carried out under different wind synoptic conditions. Qualitative and quantitative
results (average RMSE < 1.0 m/s) show agreement between both data sets under low/high wind
regimes, proving that the spatial coverage of satellite altimetry enables the spatial assessment of
high-resolution numerical weather prediction models in complex water-covered zones.
Subjects
wind speed; satellite altimetry; WRF; model validation; sea surfaceCollections
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